


Collision Course

by Rycolfan (Snarryeyes)



Category: Whose Line Is It Anyway? RPF
Genre: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Survival
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-10
Updated: 2018-11-10
Packaged: 2019-08-21 19:06:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16582304
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snarryeyes/pseuds/Rycolfan
Summary: The guys take an unexpected detour.Originally written for a 2015 exchange fest on LJ for you_legwarmers, who requested: Ryan/Colin, hurt/comfort and/or tragedy. Happy-ish ending prefered, as well as some comic relief from Jeff/Chip. Smut would be nice. I'd love Greg to be present as well.





	Collision Course

**Author's Note:**

> One of the recent prompts I received on tumblr reminded me of something I wrote years ago, and when I tried to find it I realized I had never posted it here. So here you go. I cleaned it up a little before posting.

“Four kings.”

Brad was halfway to collecting the pot when he realized that his full house had been beaten. The smug grin slid off his face. “What? No!”

“Sorry, Brad,” Ryan said with complete insincerity, swiping the winnings from under Brad’s nose as laughter erupted around the table.

Colin, who had folded early with a pair of fives, patted Brad’s arm sympathetically. “Could have been worse—at least it’s not strip poker.”

Ryan snorted. “Chip would have been as naked as the day he was born.”

“It’s true,” Chip said with a resigned sigh. Having lost several hands in a row, his stake money was all but gone.

Jeff glanced sideways at Chip, smirking. “For the record, I think we should have played strip poker instead.”

“Big surprise,” Greg said, stubbing his cigarette out in the close to full ashtray. It shuddered a little as the tour bus hit a bump in the road. “But if we don’t get to our next gig soon, Br—“

Whatever he’d been about to say was lost amongst a loud bang, followed by the screech of wheels, and the thump and crash of everything that wasn’t fixed down. A jumble of shouts cut across each other as the bus violently tilted, one way and then the other until gravity took hold and flipped everything upside-down to the terrifying sound of crunching metal and shattered glass.

 

“Colin.”

“Col.”

Colin groaned, wondering what Greg was doing in his bedroom, and why his bed was so incredibly uncomfortable, and why he could smell smoke and gas—fuck!

“Whoa, whoa, don’t try to move,” Greg ordered, stalling his attempt to sit up. Colin blinked, focusing on the smashed lenses of Greg’s glasses a few feet away from his face.

“R—the others, are they…“

“All alive, which is some fucking miracle. Ryan’s still unconscious,” he added knowingly. So he’d noticed Colin’s swift change of words. “Are you hurt?”

Repressing a spike of worry for Ryan, Colin paused to consider the question. His head was throbbing, and the rest of his body felt as if someone had taken a baseball bat to it, but everything important was still there. “Just battered and bruised, I think. Kind of regretting taking you guys up on that joint tour offer, though.”

“You and me both,” Brad grumbled from a little way off. “You still in one piece, Col?”

“Just about,” Colin replied. “You?”

“I think I’ve broken a finger.”

“He’ll be the first one in the ambulance when it arrives,” Greg remarked dryly.

“ _If_ it arrives,” Jeff called, somewhere to Colin’s right.

“You’re just a font of positivity, aren’t you Jeff?” Chip shot back from the same vicinity.

Colin shifted, gingerly sitting up so he could look around, belatedly realizing that the bus was now on its roof. Everything fixed to the floor was now above him, cupboard doors hanging open, contents trailing out. The detritus that had taken a short spin with them was now littering every surface.

Jeff was sitting propped up further along the opposite wall of the bus, a large gash across his forehead. Chip was beside him, his normal easygoing grin absent.

“Are you two okay?” Colin asked.

“Yeah, although I think I might have busted a rib or two,” Chip wheezed.

“And I broke my ukulele,” Jeff said, holding up the broken fragments of his beloved instrument.

“There’s that silver lining,” Greg said, attempting cheerfulness. “No kumbayah while we’re waiting for the cavalry.”

Colin frowned. “How do we know the cavalry’s coming?”

“Well, we don’t. Not for sure. All of our phones are trashed, but Bob went for help.”

Colin was surprised their driver had survived at all, let alone being well enough to brave the Canadian wilderness in winter. He could already feel the chill of the ice and snow creeping through every crack and crevice, and with the power out, it was going to keep getting colder as the light faded.

“Do you know what happened?”

“A tire blew out, and we ended up down some kind of embankment—luckily on snow and not water, or we would have been singing for Saint Peter.”

Finally spotting Ryan a few meters away, Colin tried to move towards him, but was brought to a swift halt when a sharp pain lanced through his lower leg.

“Shit!”

“What?” four different voices asked at once.

Colin had to answer through gritted teeth. “I think my ankle might be broken.” Greg shifted closer to have a look. “My left,” Colin clarified, hissing in pain as Greg gently examined the area.

“Yeah, there’s no way you’re walking out of here,” he stated, expression grim. Casting a look around, he tore one of the curtains off the window.

“What are you doing?” Colin asked warily.

“Strapping it up,” Greg answered, folding the material into a long wide strip. “It’ll help control the swelling and give it some support. But it’ll also hurt like hell.”

“Great.”

Colin clenched his teeth, trying to prepare himself, but he couldn’t stop the ragged cry torn from his throat when Greg applied the first layer. “Just keep going,” he gasped when Greg paused. Sweat was breaking out across his forehead despite the cold and his vision was wavering again.

“Okay, that’s going to have to do for now.”

There was a soft groan in the darkness, and Colin instinctively tried to move towards Ryan again—pain be damned.

“Hold up there, soldier,” Greg said, holding him in place once again. “I’ll go.”

Wanting to argue, but knowing he didn’t have a leg to stand on—literally—Colin was forced to watch as Greg crawled over to where Ryan was lying.

“Ryan. Hey, Ry. That’s it, wake up, buddy.”

There was a cough, another groan, and then Ryan’s croaky voice filled the silence. “Col.”

“Close, but no cigar.”

“Where’s Colin?“

“Geez, you two know how to make a guy feel wanted.”

Jeff snorted. Or it might have been Chip.

Ryan wasn’t in the mood for bullshit. “Greg—“

“I’m over here, Ry,” Colin called through another wave of pain. “We’re all okay. Just… don’t move until Greg has checked you over.”

“There you go, now listen to Captain Sensible and tell your temporary doctor where it hurts.”

“I just banged my head, nothing to fuss about. Now get out of my way.”

“Yeah, I’d say Prince Charming is fine,” Greg drawled at Colin, moving aside. “Okay, since my medical services aren’t required, I think I’ll look around this junk for anything useful that hasn’t been smashed beyond recognition.”

Colin fixed Ryan with an exasperated look as he crawled over, although he was pretty sure that his profound relief was lessening the effect somewhat. He was quick to grasp Ryan’s hand when it was offered, solid proof that he was alive. “Are you sure you’re okay? You were out for quite a while.”

Ryan dismissed his concern. “I’ve got a thick skull. I’m more interested in you.”

Brad scoffed loudly. “Weren’t you always?”

“Play nicely, kids,” Greg called from the back of the bus. “Don’t make me come back over there.”

“He’s just pissed I trounced his full house,” Ryan murmured.

Brad didn’t hear, too intent on pressing the issue. “Well, isn’t that why you invited us along in the first place? It damn well wasn’t for me.”

“Enough,” Colin said sternly. It was a matter they’d already discussed and, Colin had thought, resolved, but apparently not. Brad was pissed and his old resentment was bubbling back to the surface. “I think we have enough to deal with right now, don’t you, Brad?”

Brad grumbled under his breath but didn’t argue, which Colin was thankful for. Pain was already stretching his patience. When he turned back, Ryan was studying him intently.

“Where are you hurt?”

Despite his considerable pain, Colin let out a quiet huff of laughter. Ryan always could read him like a book. “I think my ankle’s broken. I also have one hell of a headache, but I think we’re even on that one.”

Ryan grunted, not disputing it. He twisted around to look over at Jeff and Chip. “You two?”

“A little broken, but still alive.”

“What about Bob?”

“He went for help.”

“How long has he been gone?”

Jeff checked his watch and swore. “Well, that’s not going to be any help.”

Greg emerged from the back of the bus, carrying a heap of blankets from the overturned sleeping compartments. “About half an hour. You and Colin were both out for quite a while. Here.” He tossed a blanket to each of them. “We need to keep warm or we’ll be improv genius flavored popsicles by the time help arrives.”

“How come you’re not injured, Greg?” Jeff asked as he catches his.

“I wear a solid armor of sass and snark,” Greg answered without missing a beat.

Chip snickered and then immediately groaned, clutching his ribs. “Please don’t make me laugh.”

Colin was only half-listening, his eyes on Ryan, noting the hard line of his jaw, his stiff posture, and the slight shake of his fingers as he passed Colin a blanket. Ryan was in more pain than he was letting on, something Colin knew without a doubt because that book reading went both ways.

“Your back?”

Ryan only looked momentarily surprised before nodding once. “It’ll pass,” he said, voice tightly controlled.

“Come on, you need to lie down.” Colin helped him into a more comfortable position, covering him with the blanket, and then looked over at Greg. “I don’t suppose you found any Tylenol to go with these blankets, did you?”

“Sorry, dude. No happy pills of any kind. And all the liquor is smashed.”

“There goes the party,” Ryan grunted.

 

The temperature in the bus plummeted as the sun dipped below the horizon. No one had much to say anymore, but every breath was visible, hanging in the cold air for a moment before dissipating.

To Colin, it felt like it was dropping a couple of degrees every minute. Both of his hands and his feet were numb, although the pain in his ankle was still very much present, and the blanket was no longer making a discernible difference. When a full body shiver racked through him, he pulled the blanket tighter anyway.

Moving for the first time in quite a while, Ryan carefully shifted to a sitting position, but he didn’t stop there. He scooted closer to Colin, lifting the blankets.

“What are you doing?” Colin asked, his teeth chattering a little. His mouth felt sluggish and uncooperative.

“It’s called sharing body heat, Col. Survival 101.”

“I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not.” Ryan wrapped an arm around him, arranging the blankets so that they were both wrapped up securely. “Now shut up and snuggle.”

The cold muscles in his face attempting to form a smile, Colin leaned into him, feeling a little warmer already. Down the bus, he could make out Jeff and Chip following their example.

“Don’t think I’m sharing with grumpy,” Greg stated. He was sitting on the other side of Ryan, his coat pulled up around his ears, fingering the pack of cigarettes that he wasn’t allowed to smoke. Not without risking the whole bus going up in flames anyway. If Colin had gotten much colder, he might have suggested it.

“Good, I wasn’t going to offer,” Brad grumbled.

Greg snorted. “When are you going to get that stick out of your ass, man? It must be uncomfortable.”

Brad’s response was to flip him the finger—the unbroken one.

“People will start arriving for the show soon,” Jeff said, staring out of the cracked window nearest him. It was barely lighter outside than it was in the bus now.

Ryan hummed an affirmative, and Colin felt the vibration through his neck. “You know, I don’t think we’re going to make it.”

“How about we play a game here?” Chip suggested.

He was met with five incredulous expressions, varying in intensity. “Are you kidding?” Jeff asked.

“What?” Chip said defensively. “It’ll pass the time.”

“Wait long enough and we’ll have a real game of Freeze,” Greg commented.

Jeff gave him a withering look. “That’s not funny, man.”

“Wasn’t meant to be.”

“Okay, okay, how about questions only?” Chip asked. “No moving required.”

“Fine,” Brad said. “I’ll go first. Are the emergency services here yet?”

“Don’t you think we’d be the first to know if they were?” Ryan countered.

“How am I supposed to think straight when it’s this cold?” Brad shot back.

“You can think straight normally?”

“Do you think you’re funny?”

“Haven’t you heard the fans?”

“You have more than one?”

Ryan smirked. “Has anyone ever told you that green doesn’t suit you?”

Left on the sidelines to watch, Greg, Jeff, and Chip’s gazes swung between Brad and Ryan, Chip with a frown on his face because this really wasn’t what he’d had in mind. Colin closed his eyes, resigning himself to the inevitable. He no longer had the energy to referee.

“Has anyone ever reminded you of your marriage vows?”

Colin’s eyes flew open again in shocked disbelief. Ryan merely huffed out a quiet mirthless laugh, not bothering to respond, but Colin wasn’t going to let Brad off that easily, his hazel eyes burning with anger as they swung around to rest on him.

Brad did at least have the decency to look ashamed of himself, all of the fight draining out of his face. “I’m sorry, that was out of line.”

“Yes,” Colin said, voice hard. “It was.”

The relationship he shared with Ryan was complicated. Brad knew that better than anyone, because they’d had long talks about it on quiet nights, when Colin had needed a friend, and Brad had never once judged him. Now his words felt like a betrayal of them both.

“I’m sorry,” Brad said again, more vehemently. “I never meant to…” He shook his head, exhaling heavily. “I’m an asshole.”

“That we knew,” Greg said matter-of-factly, easing some of the tension.

“Maybe we should just try to get some sleep,” Ryan said wearily, not looking at Brad. “Conserve our energy.”

There weren’t any arguments, just a gradual lapse into silence, punctuated by the sound of bodies shifting, seeking the most comfortable position, or, to be more accurate, the least uncomfortable. Colin didn’t feel all that sleepy, so he listened to the quiet breaths around him, head resting on Ryan’s shoulder as the darkness steadily crept in, swallowing every discernible feature of their surroundings.

By the time it was completely dark, Greg and Brad were snoring softly, and Colin thought that Jeff and Chip were asleep as well until he heard a quiet moan from where they were lying together. It was followed by a soft snort from Ryan. Apparently he was awake, too. Colin shifted position slightly and felt Ryan hold him tighter, the faintest touch of lips to his temple that still managed to pool heat in his belly. Unable to resist, Colin turned to press his face against Ryan’s neck, soothed by his warmth, his heady scent, and the steady thrum of his pulse beating against Colin’s mouth. Feeling reckless, Colin moved his lips a fraction. It was only a tiny movement, the barest echo of a kiss, but Ryan instantly turned his head to look down at him. Even pressed close, Colin could barely make out any of his features in the darkness, but he could see the faint gleam of his eyes, and he had no trouble imagining his expression—the intense one he always wore when they were teetering on the edge of this particular precipice.

A soft touch of lips to his was all it took to break the deadlock, a lifetime of memories flaring behind Colin’s closed eyelids as they slowly explored and reacquainted themselves with the feel and taste of each other. Ryan laid a large palm on his cheek, fingers curling around the back of his neck, a touch that sent shivers down Colin’s spine that were completely unrelated to the cold. He barely felt the cold now, or his pain, golden warmth spreading outwards from every point of contact.

It didn’t go beyond kissing and holding. It couldn’t—not here, not now—and it didn’t need to. It was enough to feel, to map each other’s skin in the darkness, to take comfort in each kiss, each breath—irrefutable proof that they were still alive; an anchor to cling to.

Colin slept fitfully, but each time he woke, he could feel the heat of Ryan surrounding him, keeping him close, silent reassurance that allowed his eyelids to droop once more.

The next time he woke up, Colin thought it was morning, bright light making him squeeze his eyes shut. But the light quickly moved away again, and there were voices—different, unfamiliar voices, mingled with the crackle of radios. Slowly realization dawned. Colin looked up at Ryan and was met with a small smile, his relief mirrored.

It seemed that the universe wasn’t done with them yet.


End file.
